


We Belong

by asmodesgold



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Drama, First Kiss, M/M, Pre-Barisi, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-13
Updated: 2017-04-13
Packaged: 2018-10-18 06:58:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10611633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asmodesgold/pseuds/asmodesgold
Summary: Rafael accidentally runs into Carisi and ends up entangled in something potentially dangerous.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [greasycarisi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/greasycarisi/gifts).



> Thanks as always to booyahkendell for fixing all my mistakes!
> 
> Prompt from greasy-sonny-carisi: a hoarse whisper “kiss me”

Rafael exited the dry cleaners, suits hanging from a few fingers over his shoulder, and briskly made his way down the street. His apartment wasn’t far, and it was the middle of the afternoon on a fairly decent day, so he figured a walk couldn’t hurt.

Until he rounded the corner and smacked right into Carisi.

The suits swung to the side, throwing him off-balance, and he almost ate the sidewalk when he was caught by strong arms and brought close to a steadier, solid body.

“I’d thank you,” he said, after he'd recovered, though still somewhat shaken, “if you weren’t the cause of this to begin with.”

Carisi didn’t respond, didn't throw a quip back at him like normal; instead, he stared at Rafael like he couldn’t understand why he was there, and that he was scared because of it. Then his gaze fell to the comfortable navy blue sweater and jeans Rafael was wearing, and his jaw dropped. Absently, he realized Carisi had never seen him out of his usual suits. Still, there was no reason to stare.

Rafael would be miffed at this if the taller men hadn’t started rubbing circles with his thumbs in the soft knit of the jumper, and suddenly, he realized how close they were.

He could practically feel the heat coming off of the other man, could smell his cologne. It made his stomach do things it wasn't used to, things that had been happening more and more around the detective. At a loss for how to react to any of this, he tried to snap Carisi out of it.

“The blood came out of your pants. I told you my dry cleaner could get it out.”

“Oh, yeah,” Carisi said, his attention diverting to the garments still protected in their clear film. “Thanks-”

“I thought you said girlfriend, not boyfriend.”

Carisi jumped, releasing Rafael and putting space between them, face twisting from the soft expression he'd had looking at Rafael to something akin to fear. On the other side of Carisi stood a white man of stocky build, with black hair and dressed in perfectly presentable business casual, a sharp contrast to the informal jeans and Henley that Carisi was wearing.

Something about this man, and Carisi's reaction to him, set off alarm bells in Rafael’s head.

“Collin, I-”

“No, no, no,” the man -- Collin -- said with eagerness, stepping towards them. That Carisi was still between them was the only reason Rafael didn’t back away.

“We don’t discriminate against the LGBT community. In fact, we welcome diversity! Especially,” He eyed Rafael in a way that made him want to retch before putting as much distance between himself and Collin as possible. Or punch him in the face, he couldn't decide. “When they’re also Hispanic.”

Probably both then; nothing good ever came from a white man pointing out his ethnicity. The question on his mind, though, was what was Carisi doing with him? And whom did he mean when he said ‘we’?

“I haven’t told him about any of this,” Carisi said, a slight edge of panic in his voice that Rafael only picked up on from years of knowing him.

“Your boyfriend of two years you haven’t told about your interest in protecting America from enemies foreign and domestic?”

Rafael’s fight or flight instincts ramped up in intensity, or, in his case, snark or flight instincts. But Carisi looked back at him with a _look_ that conveyed -- oh.

_Oh._

The pieces fell together; Liv had told him when he’d called to inquire about dropping off Carisi’s pants at the precinct that the detective was still out in the field and that he wouldn’t be able to answer any calls.

Carisi was undercover. And from the comments made by Collin, Rafael guessed that this had to do with their case on the immigrant women showing up in hospitals with their reproductive systems crudely removed.

“After all,” Collin said. “If he’s your boyfriend, I’m sure he’s smart enough to understand that every group has bad apples and that there’s nothing more important than protecting the innocent from the abuses they’ll cause, even if that means making hard choices.”

His fingers _ached_ to curl into a tight fist, but decades as a trial lawyer had trained him to keep a cool facade.

“So, aren’t you going to introduce him? I’m Collin Green, by the way.”

Carisi glanced back at him again.

“Rafael Hernandez,” Rafael said confidently when Carisi didn't immediately answer, meeting Collin’s gaze. No sense in using his real last name in case Collin tried Googling him later and possibly blowing Carisi's cover. In his peripheral, he could see Carisi relax, but only slightly. He wouldn’t calm down completely until Rafael was out of this, and neither would Rafael himself. “And I’d love to stay and chat, but I’m afraid I have prior engagements I have to attend to.”

“Understood,” Collin said cheerfully.  “Well, I'll give you two privacy to say your goodbyes.” He strode away from them, out of earshot but not out of sight.

Carisi swiveled to Rafael, putting his back to Collin and blocking Rafael from view.

“You're going to need to take a cab and go to 3333 Broadway, they've set me up an apartment there,” he said in a hurried, hushed voice. It took all of his self control to keep his focus on Carisi’s face when every part of him wanted to keep an eye on Collin.

Carisi settled his hands on Rafael’s waist, and suddenly, it was the easiest thing in the world to give him all of his attention. His nerves were approaching dangerous territory, and he wanted to ask Carisi to let him go, but he knew they had to appear a loving couple. What frightened him was it wouldn't be difficult.

Using his grip on him as leverage, Carisi pulled Rafael closer to himself, and he didn’t let himself fight it.

“The doorman is a UC. Tell him you met Attenborough today, and he tried inviting you to the Bahamas. He’ll give you a key to my room. Go there, and stay there until I come, okay?”

Rafael nodded, the gravity of the situation stilling his tongue. Carisi drew in a shaky breath and nodded back.

“Kiss me,” Carisi said in a hoarse whisper. “Kiss me and leave quickly, make no stops, don’t look over your shoulder, _be safe_ , and wait for me. We’ll get through this.”

Feeling equal parts numb and vibrating with anticipation, he placed the hand not holding the suits on the back of Carisi’s neck and reached up to give him a simple kiss that both went on for far too long and ended far too quickly. He silently cursed their current situation for being the catalyst for their first kiss, and wondered if he was the only one who felt the tingling run down his spine at the contact.

A quick glance into Carisi’s eyes as they seperated told him no, he wasn’t. Seemingly unable to help himself, the detective darted down for another chaste kiss before bouncing backwards and hailing a cab down for him.

“See you at home, Rafi,” Carisi said louder, for the benefit of Collin. The nickname, coming out of left field, made Rafael blink. It seemed to roll so naturally off of Carisi's tongue, and it _did things_ to him. Things he didn't want to analyze too closely.

“Don't be long, Sonny,” Rafael responded, using the man’s own preferred nickname for the first time. “Love you.” And _Christ_ that rolled off of _his_ tongue _entirely too easily_.

Carisi's eyes widened almost comically, and before Rafael knew it, he was locked in another kiss, this one much more passionate.

Were it not for the beep of the cab’s horn he's not sure how long they would've remained entwined in each other. They separated, Carisi's fingers keeping contact for as long as possible as Rafael walked to the car in a daze.

Rafael resolutely did not look over in Collin’s direction until he was already safely in the confines of the cab. The man waved goodbye to him, and though he was loathe to respond with anything other than a one finger salute, he forced himself to nod, if only for Carisi’s sake.

“Where to?” The cabbie asked as the car left the curb.

Rafael hesitated. He could go to the precinct, could text Liv right now and have her meet him at a restaurant, could even go home and pretend that none of this had happened. But Carisi said...he had to trust him. Carisi was the one in the thick of this, he knew best what would keep everyone safe. And, if he was honest with himself, he wanted to stick around and play this out to see where it went.

...For their case’s sake.

After all, his direct involvement could only help their case, right?

Right. That was it.

“3333 Broadway, please.”

 

 

 

 


End file.
